Not in the plan
by NaargaLycus
Summary: Cinder's life has been far different than she would have expected it to be. She would have never guessed that she would be married and a mother of four, however, she has adapted and knows better than anything that things don't always go as planned. So this trip to the therapist should just be another little surprise . . . right? Just a fun little tale I felt like telling.
1. Chapter 1

Cinder sat inside of the therapist office with her all to common scowl present. Her sharp eyes slowly scanned the room more so out of habit than an interest of what's inside. From the walls that were littered with generic motivational posters to the pictures of the loved ones on the desk, she made sure to commit all of their faces to memory' she shouldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"Mistress, I told you there's nothing to be worried about" Cinder slowly turned her head now aiming her scowl at the young woman sitting beside her, Emerald saw the look and flinched before turning her gaze to the ground. The older woman let out a sigh before letting her face relax to it's normal only slightly annoyed expression

"I told you to stop calling me that, for this friendship thing to work you have to address me as your peer. So Cinder or one of the pre-approved nicknames we talked about." Cinder noticed how quickly the dark-skinned girl looked up with a small smile

"I understand . . . Cindy" Cinder just let out a small grunt but showed no displeasure

"Elm, I want you to be completely honest with me. Do you think I need therapy?" Emerald just stared at her for a good long while trying her best to find the right way to articulate her response.

"Cindy, you need this like a fish needs water or a dog needs a bone. I mean your mind is the equilateral of a murdering ghost possessing a chainsaw that works for the IRS. I can't-"

"For the sake of this friendship and your well being I will advise you to stop now, however, I do thank you for the honesty" Cinder slowly brought up her hand up and pattered Emerald on the shoulder, it was a small jester but spoke volumes about how much the woman has changed. The office door opened ending to moment just as quickly as it started, the two looked that way to be greeted by a rather young woman that couldn't have been older than twenty-one. With clipboard in hand, she walked into the room, her uniform was a pretty standard affair for someone in her field. A simple tan jacket with a blue shirt and a black skirt that was rather short if Cinder did say so herself. Cinder's eyes never left the woman as she walked in, following every one of her moments gathering as much data as she could form the woman doing the simple act of walking to her desk. Once seated the therapist smiled at the two women

"Let me introduce myself, I'm-"

"Blanchette Wilts, you are a graduate of a university in Vale and was born on a small farm on the edge of Haven." Blanchette and Elm blankly stared at Cinder no bothering to hide the look of surprise and aw that was very apparent on their faces. Cinder scoffed before pointing to the desk "Her name along with her credential are all there, those pictures are taken near a fairly famous place in Haven. The last point I could have been wrong but from her reaction, I can see that I was spot on, never smart to have your life on display for others to see."

The women cleared her throat before placing her smile back on "How very perceptive of you Mrs. A-"

"Just call me Cinder"

"Right, anyways since you seem to know enough about me how about telling me about yourself?" Cinder crossed her arms and stared at the girl for a moment seeing if she get the message that she really didn't feel like relaying more information than needed, but it seemed as if the young woman was more than willing to play this game. After what seemed like an eternity Cinder got tired of the stalemate and conceded, the sooner she played along the sooner she could go and take care of an important task "As you already know, my name is Cinder"

"Cinder Arc!" Cinder shot the green haired girl a dirty look and only to get a but it's true in response. With a tired sigh, she turned back to her therapist and started again.

"Right, my name is Cinder Arc. I have been with my significant other for about for years now and we have four children totally. I currently work as a combat instructor at beacon while he stays home and plays stay at home dad." Surprisingly Blanchette didn't even flinch she heard that Cinder had four children with her husband of four years, normally that little tidbit catches people off guard "The girl beside me is my friend Emerald, she has assisted me for many years. I'm pretty sure that I don't have to tell you of my past or my crimes" The girl simply nodded and jotted down in her notes, Cinder couldn't help but wonder what was being written about her. She didn't care too much but she would really prefer if there was nothing about her family.

"Alright Cinder, if you don't mind could you tell me why you've decided to start coming to therapy? You seem like a very mentally sound person, and I can't see someone like you willingly doing something like this" Cinder instantly pointed to Emerald who gave a nervous chuckle before rubbing the back of her head.

"She has been pestering me about it for awhile now, even so, I can't say that it was unwarranted." Blanchette for the first time today saw some kind of emotion on Cinders face beside annoyances and before this session ends she wanted to at least get somewhere "And what makes you say that? Is it because of your past or are you having a hard time adapting to your new life?" Cinder gave the girl a light scoff before shaking her head "I've come to terms with what I've done and have no problems living with it. As I told you I've been married for over four years so I'm more and accustom to how I live in my day to day life, I'm quite fond of the little family I've built… and that seems to be the issue" Cinder sighed as she looked at one of the pictures on the therapist desk, she thought hard about what she was going to say next but decided that it was for the best to get it off her chest "I guess you can say that I'm a little overprotective of all of them and this has caused more than a few problems in my day to day life."


	2. Chapter 2

**I would like to thank everyone for reading this story; I only posted the first chapter because I've had it written in a notebook for over a year. I know my writing isn't that good but thank you all for taking an interest in the story anyways! This is going to be reasonably short having about 10-15 chapters depending on chapter length, I'm thinking of trying to make everything from this point at least 2000 words. Having any questions or whatever just ask through review or something.**

Emerald looked at Cinder in both awe and pride, to say that the woman has a hard time opening up to others was an understatement. It usually took a scolding from Jaune to get Cinder to acknowledge that she was anything but perfect; so for her to openly come out about one of her few insecurities was a big step. Also, it means that Emerald was right when she recommended therapy! _And here I thought thing were going to to go nowhere or wrong; I can't wait for Cinder to praises me for my suggestion! Of course, that means I'll get a friendly big hug and thanks from Jaune as well, to be held in his masculine caregiver ar-_ She let out a small yelp feeling Cinder's heel dig into her foot, she turned and was greeted by the woman's very bemused face.

"Don't think I didn't notice you were thinking about something involving my husband, I don't know what it was but just know I'm always watching." Emerald felt her blood run cold at the tone in which her friend spoke, where she was reminded of the golden rule in their friendship. The dark-skinned girl just nodded her head and suddenly began looking at the ground finding a sudden interest in it. Cinder's expression turned to that of boredom as she watched her therapist jolting down something during the interaction between the two women, she was curious about what the woman had in store for her as far as treatments go.

"First of all, I would like to congratulate you on this breakthrough, while it's just the first step of many you've shown a willingness to improve." Cinder rolled her eyes at the speech; she has watched enough TV with her husband to know that this was just common therapist jargon. She will never know what he found so interesting about those tabloid talk shows "Now that you have admitted your problem we can build on that, however, our session is almost over so I would like you to bring someone new with you during your next appointment."

This request, however, caught Cinder off guard which were something that didn't frequently happen, but of course, she didn't allow it to show on her face as she merely raised an eyebrow. "May I ask why that you want me to do that?" One of the only reasons she even agreed to come to therapy is because Elm said that she was going to be with her the whole time. Cinder barely had people she could stand having a conversation with let alone sitting in on her therapy session listening in on vital moments in her life.

"As you could probably tell I not much of a people person, that trait belongs to my other half, and he wouldn't be able to make it to these sessions. He has four smaller version of me to watch over along with a house, so I don't see him having time to pop in here."

"I see, well the reason for this is because while Emerald does seem to care about you a lot I can tell her loyalty to you would stop her from saying much that would depict you in a negative light. So getting others in here to talk with about you will allow me to hone in on a solution. Also, seeing how others view you might be something that helps you a bit as well." Cinder thought about her words for a few moments trying to find any flaw in her logic. But nothing worth bring up came to mind, Cinder was all too familiar with the concept of getting others to help do your dirty work "I'm sure there are people in your life that you aren't considering or just writing off, so I can just get in contact with your husband."

The professional facade of Blanchette shattered as Cinder closed the distance between them in less than a second. She knew that when going into the life of someone like Cinder there might be unfavorable responses, however, the resolve and confident she built burned to ashes in the amber flames in Cinder's eyes. The desk beneath her palms began to smoke from the heat being generated by her, she slowly lowered her head closer and closer to the girl's toning out Emeralds pleads for her to calm down.

"Listen" Her voice was no more then a whisper, the calmness was far more debilitating then any roar of angry "I'll play my role as your patent if I must, and I'll find people to bring here. However, you don't ever try to talk to my husband. You don't ask questions about him; you don't say his name, you don't even bring him up. If I find out that you have any contact with him, you'll be all alone in your next family picture." Cinder slowly lifted one of the pictures on the desk; it was the one of Blanchette at a very young age with her mother and father in a field. The frame melted before flames began eating the picture from all sides.

"Cinder please stop!" Finally, Emerald's voice was able to break through to Cinder snapping her out of her daze, the flame that ate away at the picture stopped burning the area around the image but leaving the people unsaved. With a clear head, Cinder looked at the young woman in front of her and saw that she was shaking, a feeling a dread came over her when she realized that she might have signed away her freedom. Cinder backed away slowly and bowed.

"I'm sorry for that outburst, I allowed my composure to leave me and that not very becoming of the current Arc matriarch. If you want to info law enforcement, I understand but just allow me to contact my husband first" Emerald walked beside Cinder and mimicked her action, she was supposed to make sure her friend didn't get into trouble and failed. Blanchette took a few deep breathes as she tried to calm herself, in her head, she kept saying that this is what she signed up to do.

"It quite alright Cinder, I've come to expect this kind of outburst during assignments like these, and you showed great restraint in the end, so I forgive you. Next week just come in with a new guest, one that is preferably a huntsman" With that Cinder and Emerald gave causal waves for heading out the room, there was silence between as they got outside.

"You know that I'm going to have to inform Jaune of this right?" Emerald said with a sheepish look only to get a grunt out of Cinder. She was dreading hearing him lecture and nag her about keeping herself in check, but of course, it's the price she pays for having someone who cares.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello, everyone, this is chapter three of the fanfic and I hope you all enjoy it! Again I would like to thank everyone for the all the follows and stuff and really love that so many are enjoying this. I know there's a lot that hasn't been explained but it's all in due time! This was a really hard chapter for me to write because it's the first once without Blanchette who serves as an easy way to show off Cinder's personally and interactions with others. Also, this is my first time writing Jaune which I need way more practice doing. Again a would love to know what you all think! Also, if there are major super efforts it's because I messed up the while typing this chapter and had to go back to my first draft of it and edit that.**

The air in the living room of the Arc household was thick with tension, on the couch sat Cinder and Emerald. Cinder was tending to her youngest child Maria Arc; the infant was cradled in her mother's arms sound asleep. The other three of her children were already in bed, and for her husband's sake, she didn't want to wake them up, from personal experience she knew how difficult they could be. The head of the Arc household stood in front of both woman with a bemused expression that almost perfectly mirrored Cinders when she was upset, Jaune was a very tall man and even with him being in the house most of the time his body was still in top shape. Many would find him to be intimidating at first glance, that is before they took notice that the man was donning his Pumpkin Pete PJ's. The ones that she wanted to burn until there was nothing left.

"So let me get this strange, You almost eviscerated your therapist just because she was going to call me?" Hearing it from someone else Cinder couldn't deny that it sounded like she had a problem _It seems as if that woman had a point_.

"While I do admit that I went a little overboard over a matter that might seem trivial, you have to understand that I was just making a statement. Unlike my past encounters I didn't cause her any harm, there wasn't a single burn on her body" Cinder watched as Jaune ran his fingers through his hair, it was one of his many physical indicators that allowed her to read him so easy and acted accordingly "You have to agree that I'm improving by leaps and bounds without the need for some hack trying to pick my brain"

"I can't disagree with you there, and she did accept your apology, so I guess everything worked out this time, but this just shows that you might need to keeping going to that hack to keep your emotional outburst to a minimum." Cinder scowled at the statement; she hated them being called 'emotional' outburst. Makes it seem like she had no control over herself.

"I'm not some hotheaded teenage girl who throws a hissy fit whenever someone hits on my boyfriend." Cinder handed Maria off to Emerald who processed to leave the room not waiting to get in the middle of the town. Cinder moved closer to Jaune until there was no space between them, she stared into his eyes as if she was challenging his resolve.

"Oh, is that right?" Jaune matched her glare showing that he was not going to back down so easy this time, whenever possible Jaune tried to be as non-confrontational towards his wife as possible. Their fights normally lead to them giving each other the cold shoulder for some period until one cracks and the two make up. "You drive that point home by trying to blow up your Therapist; I hope when Ember starts school she doesn't have a female teacher that needs to call me!"

"You sound like you need to relax a bit Jaune, taking care of the children have you on edge, and you need time with other people" Cinder grinned as she pulled out her scroll and pulled up a few numbers "How about hanging out with Rin and Mercury for a few drinks? I can watch the children tonight if you want to enjoy a boys night out." Of course, she would have her trusted ally keep her updated on everything that happens, giving her names and physical descriptions of women that try to chat with Jaune.

"This is more important! Besides for some reason, every time we go out somewhere Mercury spends most of his time looking me talk to people and going to the restroom." Cinder couldn't help but marvel at how charmingly naive her sweet Jaune was; she would have to make sure our girls don't get this from their father "You need to learn how to trust people."

"I've learned to trust you"! Cinder scoffed as she shook her head "You're the one who promised on his little knight's honor to do everything in your power to help me change if I trust you, now here I am being passed off to some woman I don't even know and being told to trust her. It seems like your words aren't worth very much."

Cinder saw the expression on Jaune's face and knew that she once again allowed herself to get out of hand, all the fight that was in him vanished as he looked at the ground as if he was admitting defeat.

"You're right; I'm the one at fault" Form his words Cinder knew that she had won this argument, however, couldn't find any joy in her victory. "I should have been more diligent in helping you instead of depending on Emerald and now someone I haven't even met; I should be the one who's making sure you're taken care of. I've neglected my duty to you as a husband, and I'm sorry-" Before he could continue Cinder gripped his face and brought her lips to his, she indulged in it for moments before releasing him.

"I was out of line for saying those things, You have an important job to make sure all our children grow up happy, and as we discussed they come first, I'm a big girl and will take the necessary steps to improve. Even if I have to keep going to this Blanchette woman, I'll have Emerald to help me along. I will endure it because I am an Arc and it's what we do" Cinder knew that the last line would get him, he couldn't help but smile at her being that fact up. She could read her sweet, naive little husband like a book and could turn disputes in her favor. She knew how to hurt him, something she won't allow anyone including herself to do.

Emerald who had put the youngest Arc to bed and sneaked in during the exchange jumped a little when Jaune turned his sights to her. She could feel a heavy mix of anxiety and excitement when he walked towards her with is signature smile present on his face.

"Emerald, thank you for taking such good care of Cinder, and I hope that I can continue to rely on you to keep an eye on her in my absent" Emerald closed her eyes as she was engulfed in a firm hug by the man. A light shade of red was viable on her cheek as she fully accepted the embrace.

"N-No problem Jaune, I live to serve to the Arc family and Cinder is like a sister to me. A very scary, violent sister" Emerald rested her body against his chest feeling the echoes of his hardy laughter from her description for his wife.

"Well hopefully we can work on changing the violent part, but I can tell you that even after four children she still scares me sometimes. So you're not alone there, keep up the good work" With that he released her causing Emerald to almost fall, but she caught herself. She looked towards Cinder and found that all to familiar look of annoyances on her face but there was no sign of disapproval on it. Decided it would be a good time to let the two of them have some alone time Emerald excused herself and left the room once more

Cinder and Jaune laid on the couch of their living room taking in all that has happened in their life, from the start of their life together to their youngest child being born the two reflected in silences about the past and what the future holds for the Arc family.


	4. Chapter 4

**(Please read author note at the end of the chapter)**

"And this is when we gave little Maria her first bath, I can tell from the look of defiance on her face that she's going to be a handful." Blanchette looked on in shock at what was happening front of her, in her two years of professional work she has never seen such a shift in someone's personality. In front of her was her patient Cinder Arc, the woman that a week ago almost incinerated her over trying to talk to her husband having an idle chat with someone over baby pictures. She seemed to have listened and brought someone new to her, but the young therapist couldn't help but wonder about the guest. From her pink and brown hair to the way she dresses Blanchette found the woman a bit odd, the fact that her eyes seemed to change color every once in awhile didn't help either.

"Uh, Well I'm happy to see that you seem to be doing well today Cinder" Cinder and the woman beside her looked up from their photo gazing towards Blanchette. Seeing that she had their attention, she continued "Why don't you introduce me to our new guest so we all can get a bit more formal with each other."

"If I must, also now I would prefer it if you called me Mrs. Arc." Cinder said before putting her Scroll away seeing as it was now meet and greet time. After having a long talk with her husband, she decided that it would be less stressful for him if she tried to be more cooperative in these little sessions. Stress may lead to infertility, and she couldn't have that "The woman here with me today is the family babysitter and one of my friends Neopolitan or Neo for short, don't bother trying to get her to talk because she can't. Watching people try stopped being fun long ago."

Neo smiled at Blanchette and gave an enthusiastic wave which Cinder rolled her eyes at, she was well aware at how extra Neo could be, but she was still one of the very few people she could stand to be around. Neo not being about to speak meant that Cinder didn't have to worry about the girl saying stupid things which were a plus.

"Well it's nice to met you Neo, my name is Blanchette and I'm the one that will be trying to dig into the thoughts of Mrs. Arc" Neo looked at the woman for a moment and frowned before rubbing her index and thumb together much to the woman's confusion, she knew a bit of sign language but couldn't figure out what the gesture was.

"She's pretending to play you a sad song on the worlds smallest violin, from what I can tell it's The Lark Ascending" While she did do a good job hiding it Cinder could still see the small spark of panic that was in the woman's eyes, something she was sure Neo could spot as well. It seems as if their last encounter has had a lasting effect on the woman.

"Well, all joking aside. Since Neo can't speak or tell me anything I guess I'll just ask you about how this friendship started, no offenses but I can't the see two of you getting along in normal circumstances" Both Cinder and Neo looked at each other as if they were having a silent conversion before finally turning their heads back to face her.

"I guess I have no choice but to tell you about how we decided to actually start seeing each other as more than work associates, can't have this little imp snicking to my husband about me withholding information" Neo grinned as her and held up her scroll with had a picture of Emerald, Cinder, and herself with Jaune standing behind them "We already had a history with each other through her former employer, so it was irony or faith that we would meet again in a similar way.

Blanche couldn't stop a look of interest from showing on her face; she didn't expect to get to this point in her past so soon. She wondered what happened in the last week to make her more open, she had an idea but didn't want to assume anything.

"After my defeat at the hands of my now husband I was arrested and almost sentenced to death, however, because of information I had among other things Emerald and myself was put under his watchful eye for rehabilitation and to operate as his subordinates."

 _It has been more than a month since her humiliating defeat at the hands of the Arc boy and the even more degrading punishment of being his little prisoner. All this in combination with this new 'curse' she seemed to be affected with Cinder would have much rather have suffered the death penalty. However, she should have known that with her Intel on Salem and the fact that she was the spring maiden would be a reason for them to find something that would make her wish death upon herself._

 _In front of her was the sleeping form of the 'hero' Jaune Arc, he looked so peaceful as if he didn't have a single care in the world. He was weakened from their battle, multiple deep cuts along with his body and a shattered rib cage wasn't enough to stop him from pushing on as he faced her_

" _I hate you" She whispered as her hand slowly moved towards him, she could end it all now. Make him pay from not taking her out when he had the chance and letting his guard down, allowing her to stay by his side as a silly show of trust and his irritating words that rang through her head._

' _I forgive you for what you did.'_

" _I hate you" She grit her teeth as her fingers grazed his neck, she wanted to strangle him and accept the consequences._

' _and if you trust me I will help you see the good in yourself and the world.'_

" _I hate you" She was almost there, her hands wherein the position and with all, she needed to do now was no hesitant like she did when they fought. The single mistake that had cost her everything, the power that she wanted more than anything in this world._

' _I promise, and an Arc nothing goes back on his promise.'_

 _Letting out a weak sign the woman's hands moved away from his neck, and she started to caress his cheek, she not only received the power but she was cursed with a profound lust for this simple man "I guess you got the last laugh Miss Nikos" Cinder couldn't stop a look of amusement from appearing on her face as she laid herself beside him making sure not to wake or cause him any more pain, she checked the time and found that she has been watching him for the last four hours and didn't think that sleep would take her anytime soon._

" _Don't think that I'm as susceptible to your little hide and seek tricks as others, I've been well aware of your presents for a while now" Out of thin air Neo appeared on the edge of the boy's bed with her weapon pointed at Cinder. From what she was told Neo joined up with Jaune during his travels with the silver eyed girl becoming his new partner when the brat joined back with her friends. Just how playful and touchy she was with the boy brought up a feeling of jealousy from Cinder, something that brought, even more, dread into her life. While Neo tried to make, it seems as if he was just a toy for her to have fun with she knew that this small woman was very protective of Jaune, watching him every night since Cinder joined them she came._

 _Much to Cinder's annoyance the multi-colored woman had a smug look on her face which Cinder knew was trouble, the two didn't have the best relationship in the past, so there was no doubt in Cinder's mind that Neo was going to find some way to make her life even worse than it already is. What was worse is that Cinder herself was still recovering still from her battle with the sleeping boy, she doubted that Neo would have much of an issue taking her out. Once again Cinder would have to take a loss, something that was getting very common these days._

" _What do you want? As you can probably see I am unable to bring myself to harm jau- the boy, even now I don't know why I'm here beside him" That was a blatant lie, she was here because her body craved his warmth. The feeling of his skin and the radiant of his aura, something that with every passing day she was finding harder to live without._

 _Neo grinned as she pulled out her scroll and began typing out something before showing it to Cinder, what she saw both confused and scared her._

 _Neo: You look so pathetic Cinder, I would have removed you from him by now, but I find this somewhat cute in a sad kind of way. I could help you out a bit if you want, Jaune always told me to help the less fortunate._

 _Cinder felt ashamed of herself for allowing the words Neo typed to have any effect on her; she was supposed to be better than this. She was supposed to be one of the most influential beings in the world, but look at her now. Now she has nothing but herself … but she could change that._

" _I do not need the boy" The words felt like acid in her throat as she said it but thanks to her years of training her poker face held steady, that didn't stop Neo from pushing her farther._

 _Neo: Suit yourself, maybe I'll just ask that Emerald girl or one his many female friends if they want to watch over my play brother._

 _She was doing her best to try and ignore the girl's words, but it was a hopeless endeavor, Cinder looked to the sleeping knight and found herself replaying his words childish words of hope and friendship through her head over and over_

 _Neo: Maybe I'll trade in my sister title for something more, Neapolitan Arc has quite the ring to it_

 _Cinder reacted without thinking; she summoned out of her daggers and at speeds that even surprised her she had it to Neo's throat, she was breathing heavily but not loud enough to wake the boy. Even in her current position, Neo had a smile on her face as she had her hands up in surrender._

" _I can no allow you to do that."_

 _Cinder looked up at Neo and in her eyes was a new resolve, she had allowed all of these feelings make her weak and vulnerable, this is why she had become such a failure. She was no longer going to be a prisoner to her emotions, nor was she going depend on someone else to achieve her goals as she had done in the past. Cinder Fall's will stake claim to what's hers with her power, and to do so, she will turn her greatest weaknesses into her greatest strength._

" _I'm not going to let someone take what's mine away, not anymore."_

 _Neo uses her thumb to type something on her Scroll while she at knifepoint, she adjusted it a bit so that Cinder could see the message._

 _Neo: I think this is going to be the start of a beautiful friendship_

 **NOTES**

 **Easily my longest chapter so I hope you all enjoy! I see some interesting reviews talking about yanderes (I love reading reviews so again thank you all! Also I love yanderes and waiting for a good yandere ruby x jaune fic to pop up). Current day Cinder I don't really consider a yandere but if you do that's fine, she is very about her family and her man. Now Past Cinder is a whole different beast, so the people that like more yandere characters might find her more appealing. This is the first chapter with a flashback so tell me how you enjoyed this one, it was fun to write. Also, what did you think of Neo, she's going to appear more. Again thank you all for taking out the time to read this!**


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